Page 27 of Old Girls Go Greek
‘You should come with us. We have a lot of laughs,’ I said encouragingly.
He shook his head. ‘I’m afraid I would be a bit of a spare wheel. I don’t think I’m very good company at the moment.’
‘I’m looking forward to the trip to see the Minoan excavation site one day this week. I’m told you know a lot about it. I’d really love to hear all about it.’
He looked doubtful. ‘Would you? It’s very dry stuff, some of it.’
‘I would,’ I said firmly, and he smiled at me, and for a few seconds we just sat looking at each other, and I swear the air between us fizzed with something.
Still, talking of things being dry, I was again aware that my damp swimming costume was riding up into places I’d rather it didn’t. I really did need to go and get changed.
8
I’d only been in my room for a few moments when Anita tapped on the door and came in.
‘What happened? What did he say?’ she said.
‘Nothing much,’ I said. ‘I asked him about the Minoans and he said it was pretty dry stuff. And he wasn’t very good company at the moment.’
‘I bet he is,’ Anita replied. ‘A man doesn’t look like that and not enjoy life, surely? Perhaps he has just split up with his wife, and they have been through a terrible divorce. And she got the house, the childrenandthe chihuahua. And he has come here to recover his peace of mind and plan the future away from the terrible rattle of the letterbox and more solicitors’ letters.’
‘He didn’t say anything about that. Just that he understood things could be difficult,’ I said, chuckling.
‘Absolutely. He is probably a man battered by life, looking for tranquillity, and he has taken one look at you and seen you for the very woman he needs to restore his self-esteem and peace of mind.’
‘I’ve never heard such nonsense,’ I said. ‘I think he really does want to be left alone.’
‘In which case, what is he doing here?’
‘I don’t know, Anita!’
‘You must find out, and we are only here for a few more days so there is no time to waste.’
‘You ask him then.’
‘Oh no, you are the one he wants to talk to.’
‘Go away and let me get changed, this swimming costume is cutting off my blood supply. And I have sand in very inconvenient places.’
‘Fair enough. Okay, I’ll see you on the roof terrace later. I need to send Rick some pictures and let him know how we are getting on.’
Back in my room, I stripped off and showered and I thought about what she had said.
There were moments when Will actually did seem to want to talk to me. The trouble was he didn’t seem keen on talking about himself, and that rather spoiled the flow of conversation.
Perhaps she was right and he was dealing with some terrible marital trauma, or maybe he was ill, or damaged in some way. It was very intriguing. And after all, after this week I would probably not see him again. He wasn’t a member of the Lower Begley art class; he had come here independently. In fact, just like me, there was no evidence he painted at all.
I’d been married to Malcolm for so many years, and he had been a man who absolutely loved talking about himself. After nearly forty years there wasn’t a thing I didn’t know about his allergies (vanilla, cheap olive oil and kiwi fruit), his preferences (sheets and blankets, not duvets, and a hideously expensive duck down pillow), his special leather chair in the sitting room that no one else was allowed to sit in, incompetent colleagues (many) and his opinions on politics. Will was the other side of the coin, a man who didn’t want to share the most basic information. So why in that case did I feel as though I knew him? It was very odd and increasingly interesting. Especially to an inquisitive person like me.
Up on the roof terrace, the daylight was fading and there were the beginnings of a beautiful, warm evening. The sky above us was a delicious violet with the first stars winking over the dark sea.
Effie was leaning over the balustrade and smoking; Susan and June were sitting at a table chatting, and next to them Dennis was rummaging importantly through his sketch book, peering at the pages in the glow from the terrace lights.
‘I think I really got the sea right in this one, don’t you?’ he said, and June nodded and made appreciative noises.
‘Tomorrow I’m going to really capture the spirit of this place,’ he continued. ‘I’m going to immerse myself in the local culture and splurge everything out on the paper.’
I wondered for a moment what this event would look like.
